Travel Watercolor Palette (eye shadow box)

 I have been looking to make a travel sized watercolor palette for when I am on vacation or out and just want to paint.  I have found that this is an extremely effective palette, and also extremely affordable.  I bought it at the dollar store so it was only $1 but if you have one laying around at home, that is even better because it is free.  I also like it because it is about the same size as an ipod, in all dimensions.  A GREAT piece to add to a portable kit!

Step 1 Remove Eye Shadow

After you take it out of the package, remove the eye shadow.  I used a knife to get under the corner of the eye shadow, and this particular eye shadow box had the makeup in a little tin, so it came out effortlessly.  Also, make sure to remove any adhesive that is under the tin.  Be sure to wash it out clean to remove any debris.

Comments

[jessiegirl]

great idea, but i already have a watercolor palette. do you think i could do this with gouache? Do they reconstitute the same way watercolors do?

[bettbee]

This is good thinking!

I would suggest several tweaks:

First, see if any eyeshadow-wearing humans you know have old compacts they should be replacing, thus making this project more green. (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and all that.) (One should get rid of old eye makeup fairly often for health reasons.)

Second, paint the lid a medium grey to make a more neutral and thus better mixing surface than white.

For acrylics, try using a wet sponge under a bit of blotting paper to keep them from drying out. The paints sit right on the paper. Make sure to create a good seal for the lid, you could probably do so with some silicone caulking and petroleum jelly. And keep that paper damp or it'll all dry out. (Now that I think of this, this is probably a better idea for an altoid tin than an eye shadow compact)

(Probably don't do this with oil paints. They can have toxic qualities, from the solvents to some pigments.)

[GraduallyGreener]

 Oil paint is toxic, yes, but if you handle it properly its perfectly safe. I would suggest if you were going to put oil paints in one of these, make sure that the case was water tight. What's nice about oils is that they don't dry out very quickly, meaning you could squirt a glob into the trays and it would probably be good for a week or so, depending on where you live. 

Acrylics dry far too fast.

[mncannon]

 Excellent idea. I wonder if it would work with acrylic paints? They might be too runny for this.

[salomommie]

nope sorry acrylics are a type of liquid plastic and dry like plastic.
watercolors are the only re-activatable (new word!) art medium there is.

[Pretendx2xchoke]

 i suppose it could work with acrylics, but acrylics dry soo fast and dont reactivate with water, so you would probably have to bring the paints with you and squirt them in the cups. but hey, whatever works

[peace, love, art]

I used to use styrofoam egg cartons to squirt my acrylics into. If you put a moist paper towel across the top of the cups it will keep the paint for about a day. There have been times when i have worked with one carton for weeks and just re-wet the towel for storage each time. Also, if you want to be extra cautious, you can cover the towel with some plastic wrap. This is a really great system. It's not portable enough to go in a backpack, but you could definitely carry it from one location to another.

[l8nite]

If you put the egg carton in a plastic container with a lid and lay some damp papertowel in the bottom you have a cheap wetpallette that can keep acrylics workable for a week of more

[peace, love, art]

Today I thought of an even better idea for a portable acrylic pallet:

1. Acquire a bead organizer box (plastic box with many small compartments      and a hinged lid.).
2. Cut a terry cloth towel (or other absorbent material) to be slightly larger than the box's lid.
3. Fill the compartments with acrylic paint.
4. Moisten the towel, lay it over the top (let the excess hang over the sides) and firmly shut the lid.
5. Use the lid as a pallet when you are painting, wash it after use.
6. Always keep the towel moist and wash out the entire box when you will not be using it for an extended period of time.

For an even more travel friendly pallet, use a pill organizer.

Maybe I'll make an instructable for this when I get the chance!

[l8nite]

 This is a really cool idea. Being colorblind I don't know for sure but I read that a light gray is better for mixing against than pure white. I work in acrylics and my mixing pallette is probably 1/4 thick in old paint (shrug)

 There's a really great forum for artists at www.wetcanvas.com artists of all mediums and skill levels share experiences and knowledge, I think this idea would be a big hit in the watercolor section

[Pretendx2xchoke]

 i have never heard about the light gray for a palette, but i guess it makes sense now, i have seen a few commercially made light gray palettes, but all i have ever had was white.

i work in all sorts of mediums, but recently really started enjoying watercolor. 

i made an account on wetcanvas...waiting for it to get activated, THANKS!

[l8nite]

 I can get lost for hours on WC, even though most of my painting is with acrylics theres tips and ideas that I can use from watercolor or oil painters, theres a tutorial on painting ocean waves in the marine section that is totally awesome but there is so much more. I hope you get as much from it as I do

[peace, love, art]

To improve this slightly, you could probably remove the logo from the lid by scrubbing it with a scouring pad. That is, if you wanted to be super picky. :)

[peace, love, art]

Wow, this is such a good idea. Not to mention, its so cute! Good job.

[Pretendx2xchoke]

 thanks!

when i went to the dollar store, i was honestly just trying to find some kind of divider to make a portable pallet out of an altoids can like everyone else had done...then i saw this and thought that it was perfect